U.S. Pat. No. 5,528,791 discloses a roller-type wringer floor mop with a pivoting head. This type of mop is normally symmetric with the handle positioned exactly perpendicular to the head. That is, the elongated central axes of the handle and of a sponge element on the head together generally define a single plane that divides both the head and the handle in half along their long dimensions. The elongated sponge element has a curved outer surface to provide a continuous contact surface when either side of the mop handle and head are pitched or inclined towards the user while being used. The mop handle is also pivotally mounted to the mop head so that the handle may be tilted from its original position exactly perpendicular to the mop head towards one of the long ends of the mop head so that the handle is inclined in the long direction of the head. This enables the user to more easily maneuver the head into narrow places.
Another type of wringer mop is known as the "butterfly" type. A butterfly-type mop normally includes an elongated handle fixedly attached to a central bracket member of the mop head. The central bracket member pivotally supports a pair of paddles on its opposing lateral sides. Collectively the central bracket member and the paddles mount and support an elongated sponge element. The elongated direction of the sponge element is generally perpendicular to the elongated direction of the mop handle. However, unlike the roller-type wringer mop, the sponge element of a butterfly-type wringer mop is generally square and flat and the handle extends from the head at an angle to the flat bottom of the sponge element and plane of the mop head to enable the full bottom surface of the sponge element to contact a floor surface with the handle of the mop pitched toward the mop user.
Butterfly-type mops are often equipped with a wringer in the form of a bent wire member having a pair of arms. Ends of the arms are pivotally attached to either side of the central bracket member in positions where, when the wringer is pivoted down, the arms ride over and cam the paddles down from their normal, generally coplanar positions to deflected, generally side-by-side parallel positions with the sponge element folded over between them. The wringer is typically operated by a collar which is slidably mounted on the mop handle and a link having one end pivotally coupled with the slide collar and a remaining end pivotally coupled with the wringer.
The utility of a butterfly-type wringer mops could be substantially increased if the head were made to pivot so that the handle lies in a common plane with the elongated direction of the head in the same way that the aforementioned roller-type wringer mop can be configured. However, differences in construction and operation preclude butterfly-type wringer mops from being able to use the construction of the aforesaid roller-type wringer mop with tilting handle.